Three-year-old Jaylah Ojeda of Danbury with her flower balloons at the Westerners' 20th Anniversary Fan Festival at Rogers Park. Saturday, June 14, 2014

Three-year-old Jaylah Ojeda of Danbury with her flower balloons at the Westerners' 20th Anniversary Fan Festival at Rogers Park. Saturday, June 14, 2014

Photo: Scott Mullin

Westerners celebrate 20th anniversary with walk-off win

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DANBURY -- For the last 20 summers, some of the top collegiate baseball players in the country have gathered in Danbury and spent two sweltering months crisscrossing New England on buses in search of a dream. They come from all different places and all different backgrounds, but are united by the common goal of one day playing professional baseball. The Danbury Westerners, the longest-running team in the wood-bat New England Collegiate Baseball League, has helped quite a few ballplayers realize their dream.

The Westerners celebrated their 20th anniversary on Saturday, holding a special event at Rogers Park with lots of free food, entertainment and games. It was attended by fans, kids and Danbury dignitaries past and present. And it was the perfect opportunity to recognize the past and get excited about the future of the Westerners and the NECBL.

There have been 19 former Westerners to make it to the Major Leagues, and more than 50 former Westerners were playing pro ball in 2013.

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Matt Joyce was a 19-year-old prospect with the Westerners in the summer of 2004 and a 12th-round draft pick the following year. Former pitcher Mark Malaska, who won a World Series ring with the Boston Red Sox in 2004, was an All-Star outfielder in both of his stellar seasons with the Westerners in 1998 and 1999. And 12 Westerners -- 10 past and two present -- were selected in the 2014 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, including 2012 Westerners pitcher Jake Stinnett, who was taken by the Chicago Cubs with the 45th overall pick.

"It was a big thrill seeing the names come up on draft day," Westerners President Paul Schaffer said, "and then after that, talking to the players, emails, texts, wishing them the best of luck. They remember their time in Danbury very fondly."

The Westerners individually and the NECBL collectively benefit the players in two ways: First, the conditions in the league are as close to those of a minor-league club as possible, complete with non-stop schedules, wooden bats and long bus rides. And second, the games are crawling with big-league scouts eager to get their hands on the next can't-miss prospect.

"It absolutely is a stepping stone," Schaffer said. "We have scouts at every game. They players get seen, and they're here to improve their skills in the summer so that, when they go back to their schools in the fall, they're ready to go."

The Westerners and the NECBL have grown up side by side. Since its inception in 1994, the league has grown from five Connecticut-based teams to 12 teams representing all six New England states. It is now one of the foremost collegiate summer leagues in the country, and the Westerners have been a big part of that since they joined the league in 1995.

"The foundation was set 20 years ago by Mayor (Gene) Eriquez and a bunch of others," Schaffer said. "My board of directors and I are carrying the torch right now. We really have a successful program that's nationally recognized, and we're most thrilled about that."

About the only thing the Westerners haven't accomplished in their 20 summers in the cozy confines of Rogers Park is win an NECBL championship, which is something seventh-year manager Jamie Shevchik and his crew are hard at work trying to do right now.

The Westerners helped that cause by rallying for a 5-4, walk-off win over the Vermont Mountaineers Saturday night at Rogers Park. Trailing by a run late, the Westerners rallied to tie the game in the eighth and win it in the ninth.

In the eighth, A.J. Ryan reached on an error ansd scored the tying run on Chris DelDebbio's RBI single. In the ninth, Jake Ring led off with a single and later scored the game-winner on Zach Lavy's one-out single. Joshua Palacios and Brennan Morgan each had two hits for the Westerners, with Palacios adding an RBI and a stolen base.

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Tim Holmes started on the mound for Danbury and worked five solid innings, allowing one unearned run on one hit while striking out seven and walking two. Joey Arena surrendered three runs, two earned in a rough sixth inning, but Max Knutson, Levi Mintz and Joe Kuzia each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, with Kuzia earning the win.

The Westerners snapped a three-game losing streak with the win, and will visit the rival North Adams SteepleCats Sunday at 4:30 p.m.